PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, CMC – Haitian health authorities Friday confirmed that a resurgence of cholera has resulted in the deaths of several hundred people in the crisis-torn Caribbean country, since the beginning of the year.

They said that as a result, health authorities have had to redouble their efforts to cope with the epidemic that has already claimed thousands of lives since its first outbreak in 2010.

Director for the Epidemiology, Laboratories, and Research Department at the Health and Population Ministry, Dr Samson Marseille, said at least 726 people have been killed by cholera since October 2022, when the disease first re-appeared.

“Since the recent torrential rains that have caused devastating flooding in the country, we’ve observed an increase in the number of cholera cases; so we are intensifying our efforts aimed at combating the disease,” Marseille told the Haitian-Caribbean News Network.

“We plan to launch new awareness raising campaigns to warn people about the need for behavioural change when it comes to hygiene precautions; anyone with symptoms associated with cholera such as severe or watery diarrhoea, vomiting, nausea, or dehydration…should immediately go to one of our Cholera Treatment Centers,” he added.

According to figures released by health authorities, the cholera epidemic that first hit Haiti in October 2010, killed 10,174 people and since October last year, 726 people have died, including 26 from the period June 1 to 5.

The figures show that 24 people died last weekend from cholera. There were also 45,248 cholera suspected cases, 3007 confirmed cases, 41,557 cases of hospitalisation, during the period October 1, last year to June 5, 2023.

The age average for hospitalised cholera victims is 17 years old.

In the aftermath of the first outbreak of the disease, initially brought by international peacekeepers, the United Nations had promised to make funds available to deal with the situation, including purchasing water purification systems to protect the population, many of whom lack access to potable water.

But nothing seems to have been done in that regard.